With the development of an increasing number of Advanced Driver Assistance (ADA) systems, there is a need to assess the impacts of various ADAS on driving such as their effects on driver attention and driving performance. As part of the European project ADVISORS, TRL have conducted simulator assessments of an adaptive cruise control system (ACC). The aim of ADVISORS is both to develop a set of assessment methods to evaluate the safety of ADAS and to identify ADAS with potential benefits. This paper presents a full description of the methods used during the assessments. The trial compared drivers with and without the system, and explored the effect of different traffic conditions (light/heavy traffic). The findings from the assessments are detailed and implications in terms of the safety and usability of ACC are considered.
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